Foundation · a field of logic
Ancient Logic
Aristotle’s syllogistic and the propositional logic of the Stoics: the two founding streams of the Western tradition.
An entry point for philosophy
- The problem
- Can valid reasoning be reduced to a small set of universally correct forms?
- The turning point
- Aristotle’s syllogistic, the first formal system in history, reduces valid inference to figures and moods (Barbara, Celarent…).
- An open question
- How far did Stoic propositional logic anticipate modern sentential logic, and why was it forgotten for so long?
The Canon
- Organon c. 350 BCE
- Logical Fragments c. 250 BCE
To study it
- Ancient Logic and Its Modern Interpretations
- The Stoics